Kia flies the coupe

A long, low-slung sports coupe is not something many expected from the Korean budget brand.

August 22 2011

Steve Colquhoun

Kia's coupe concept

Kia's coupe concept

Kia's coupe concept

Kia's coupe concept

Kia's coupe concept

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Watch out Mercedes-Benz CLS. Look over your shoulder, Audi A7. Your next rival could be coming from a direction that neither you, nor anyone else, is expecting.

Korean budget brand Kia will unveil a four-door coupe concept at next month’s Frankfurt motor show that has the looks to rival luxury marques but with a price tag that would likely be substantially smaller — if it ever makes it into production.

The as-yet unnamed concept car is finished in an eye-catching chrome mica and adapts the long, low profile of the current Optima sedan into a longer, even lower hatchback-like profile reminiscent of the Aston Martin Rapide.

That’s not the only resemblance to the storied English sports car maker, either. The curved folds either side of the grille and raked headlights ape Aston’s rare and expensive One-77 supercar, not to mention the Veloster three-door coupe made by sister company Hyundai that will soon arrive here.

The large rear-wheel-drive concept has a long-flowing bonnet that could house a V8 engine, with speculation suggesting this concept could be the first rendering of the ‘‘other’’ Korean brand’s expected large car, codenamed K9, based on the Hyundai Genesis platform and sitting above the mid-size Optima.

Kia Australia spokesman Kevin Hepworth says little is known about the concept but that ‘‘it’s not high on our priority list at the moment given the success of large rear-wheel-drive cars here at the moment’’.

‘‘There’s no reason to say we couldn’t find a spot for it in the future, it’s just that we have other priorities such as getting the Picanto, plus a few turbocharged engines,’’ he says.